Taking a Family Getaway

I remember the first time we took a spontaneous family getaway. It was not on our agenda, but we decided to do an entire weekend in Vegas. It was amazing. The kids were thrilled, and loved the idea of sleeping at a luxurious hotel. It was also great to model what it looked like to relax and enjoy time away. Most recently we took a trip to Palo Alto. We stayed at a luxury hotel in downtown Palo Alto called the Garden Court Hotel. It is one of Silicon Valley’s best gems.

The children loved the spacious deluxe suite, because it offered a big screen television for their cartoons. It was even a treat for them to order room service, which gave us the opportunity to enjoy the room and the amenities of the hotel. It wasn’t until our weekend was almost over that I realized the importance of modeling self care for our children. Below are three important reasons why they need to see us relaxed.

1. They feel cared for: Even as we kick off our shoes, and tie our comfortable robe, our children model our behavior and feel a sense of safety in our shift. There is so much competing for our attention, that they are excited to experience what it feels like to relax.

2. They become more relaxed: There is something that happens when we as parents are more centered and relaxed; our children follow. They eventually see the level of calm we exhibit and they follow suit.

3. It pushes a restart button: Over the last several weeks leading up to our vacation, we experienced numerous changes. Our oldest daughter with special needs experienced several seizures within a two week period and we felt like it was a perfect time to get away and hit the restart button.

As parents, the best way to help our children learn wellness is to model what it looks like. Sometimes a weekend getaway accomplishes that goal.

Eraina Ferguson is a creative nonfiction writer currently penning a memoir about raising a daughter with autism and deafness. Her story was featured in “The New Haven Register” She holds an M.Ed in Education and an MAR in Religion from Yale University. Learn more about her here: erainaferguson.com

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